Chapter 1 - They Were Loan Sharks (1/2)

The sound of items crashing and breaking startled Arianna from her sleep. She didn't have time to groan and stretch because she was already on her feet thanks to the racket coming from downstairs.

With a frown furrowing her brows, she stared out at the wall clock, it was barely six in the morning. Arianna sighed, running her hands through her hair, hoping to God it wasn't another of Claudia's fit of rage.

Claudia was no other than her uncle's only child and daughter - the princess of the family. Thanks to the fact that she was a spoiled brat, Claudia never takes no for an answer. She's a bitch who thinks the world revolves around her and when she doesn't get what she wants, the girl begins an outburst. Arianna likes to call it ”episodes'' because she could swear, the girl was losing it.

And yes, Arianna's an orphan, neither does she know what her mother looks like. Her father had died from cancer when she was ten and ever since, her father's brother, her uncle, has been acting as her guardian. But then, living here was equivalent to living in hell.

They abused her to the point it was quite a miracle she had lived up to this age under their roof. Although her uncle has never laid a finger on her since he brought her into his household, he was greatly aware of what his wife and daughter used her for - a maid, a punching bag to pour out their frustration.

Thanks to that realization, Arianna didn't bother to go downstairs. If Claudia was having another of her meltdowns, she would want to be as far away from her as possible. Trust her, Claudia was the type who hurls whatever she could get her hands on and she - Arianna- wasn't a sucker for pain.

However, Arianna hardly put her head back down on the pillow when a knock came on her door. It wasn't just a knock; it was hurried, hard, almost a bang.

”Young lady!”

She shot up to her feet, something was not right. That was the voice of their housekeeper and the only one who treats her like a human being here. For her to sound panicked means something was not right.

”Susan!” She opened the door at once, ”What's going on? I hear noises,”

”I'm sorry miss, but you have to come down and see for yourself,” Susan said, already dragging her along before she could think of a response.

They covered the flights of stairs in a hurry, rushing down the spiral staircase. With each step she took, the noise from downstairs became louder and her heart leaped in her throat. What was happening?

Arianna didn't have to wonder for long because as soon as she made it downstairs, she saw them. A group of hooligans destroying stuff in the living room. Her heart began to pound in her chest, how had they bypassed the security?

Moreover, gangsters don't just come into someone's home unless they are offended or do business with them? Now, which was it? What did her uncle do this time?

A look to the left showed her aunt and daughter, Claudia huddled at a corner of the room shivering in fear on the sofa. They screamed in fear each time something was smashed against the wall and she was sure these troublesome-looking men did it on purpose to scare them.